


Mistakes Are Lessons to Learn From

by MistressofIke



Category: Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mild Language
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-11
Updated: 2015-12-11
Packaged: 2018-05-06 05:39:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,808
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5405099
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MistressofIke/pseuds/MistressofIke
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Angeal overreacts.  Genesis and Sephiroth point it out.   Angeal knows he needs to resolve it quickly.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Mistakes Are Lessons to Learn From

Cloud looks like he’s going to be sick, his hand over his stomach and the other hand over his mouth.  Zack looks at him and smirks, tipping the cup in his direction as if he’s going to drink it but before he can, Cloud knocks it out of his hands to the floor.

“NO!” Cloud screeches, pointing at him, “That’s so gross! I’m totally telling Angeal this!”

Zack looks at Cloud shocked and then pauses, “You’re gonna tell Angeal?  That I was going to drink that?”

“Yes, cause it’s gross!  You’d have been sick!” Cloud fires back, pointing to the mess, “That’s nasty!”

Zack rolls his eyes and moves to the counter, grabbing up some paper towels, “You got no balls buddy.”

Cloud texts on his phone, looking at Zack, “We’ll see what Angeal says.”

“You’re telling on me?!  For fucking serious!? “ Zack exclaims, pointing to Cloud’s phone, “What the hell?!”

Cloud nods to him as his phone goes off, “Yeah, Commander Hewley….I need you to come over.  Zack is being obnoxious.”

“OH Gaia!  Fucking listen to you!” *Zack throws up his hands and walks over to the couch, sitting down hard, “Fuck you.”

Cloud takes in a deep breath, “Yeah.  Thanks.”

Cloud sees Zack’s back and shakes his head, heading into his room like Angeal told him to do.

 

It’s not five minutes later that the apartment door is thrown open and Angeal storms in, not giving Zack a moment to respond as he picks him up by the back of the shirt and smacks him hard across the ass four times before setting him down.

“I got more where that came from, now explain what the hell is going on before you get another one.” Angeal demands, looking down at Zack.

Zack stays where he is, taking a deep breath as he looks up at Angeal and then points to the mess on the floor, swallowing to find his voice, “I….I was going to drink that….cause Cloud said I couldn’t.  He knocked it out of my hands before I could.”

Angeal walks over to the mess and kneels, putting his finger in it, “What the fuck is it?”

Zack slowly stands up and makes his way over, “……”

Angeal looks at Zack, his eyebrow raised, “I’m going to get mad at you, aren’t I?”

Zack nods, moving a hand behind him instinctively, “Yeah…”

Angeal turns his attention to Cloud as he walks out and stands up, “What was it Cloud?”

Cloud walks over to the garbage and picks up an empty bottle, “Expired milk, it was curdling and everything.”

Angeal looks at the mess on the floor and then to Zack, his eyes angrier than before, “Are you stupid!?!  You know what that could have done to you!?  It’s a good thing Cloud knocked it out of your hands, he probably saved you from your own stupidity!   Gaia above Zackary!”

Zack looks at Angeal and then to the floor, “I wasn’t really going to do it.”

Angeal moves and grabs Zack’s chin, forcing him to look up, “Good to know you aren’t THAT stupid, pup.  Clean it up and apologize to Cloud.  I’m not done with you yet.”

Zack softly pulls his chin from Angeal’s grip and looks at Cloud, “Sorry.”

Angeal folds his arms across his chest, “You can do better.”

“…..Cloud….I’m sorry I said those things to you.  I’m sorry I almost made you sick.” Zack starts, catching Angeal’s look, “I hope you can forgive me.”

Cloud nods to him, seeing the hurt in his friends’ eyes, “I’m sorry too….I over reacted…..I’ll help you clean it up.”

Zack looks at Cloud surprised and then to Angeal, seeing the look of disappointment still there, “It’s alright….it’s my mistake.”

Angeal looks at Cloud as Zack starts to clean it up, “You didn’t overreact, we both know he’d have done it.  Thank you for telling me.”

Cloud nods to Angeal, guilt in his voice, “I don’t think….he would have.”

Angeal watches as Cloud kneels down to help Zack and then looks up to the door, seeing Sephiroth standing there with a pointed expression on his face.  He lets the boys clean up and heads over, closing the door behind him.

“What’s that look for?” Angeal asks him, raising an eyebrow.

“You going to slap him on the nose every time your puppy cusses someone out?” Sephiroth demands.

“Only when it’s his best friend he does it to.  Cloud called me.  He needed-“ Angeal starts, “He-“

“He needed to resolve it with Zack.  You can’t come running every time they argue.  Much less, laying a hand on your puppy for it.” Sephiroth finishes.

Angeal sees the cold look in Sephiroth’s eyes and leans on the wall, “You’re not mad I came, you’re mad I spanked him.”

Sephiroth meets his eyes, “Any way you slice it, you hit the boy.  Before you knew the whole story.  Not that it’s my concern, but isn’t that the wrong way to go about teaching think before you act?”

Angeal stares after Sephiroth as the General turns on his heels and stalks off, “…..”

Angeal hated it when Sephiroth was more right about raising Zack than he was.  When he pointed out the flaws.  He hated it, because he knew Sephiroth was right and he wasn’t going to hear the end of it from the sliver haired one for a while on it.   He lets out a breath and opens the door again, heading in to find the mess cleaned up and neither of the boys in the room anymore.  He walks to Zack’s room and opens the door, seeing him lying on his side on the bed.

“Zack?” Angeal asks, walking in and closing the door behind him, “Zack, I want to talk to you.”

Zack sits up and faces Angeal, “I know, it was stupid and making Cloud sick over a stupid thing like that-“

Angeal doesn’t let him finish, pulling Zack against him into a tight hug, stroking his hair back, “I’m sorry.”

Zack hugs Angeal back, confused, “…..Why are you sorry?”

Angeal lets out a breath, “Because I rushed to judgment before getting all the facts.”

Zack pulls back from the hug and shrugs, sitting down, “Doesn’t matter, facts would have ended the same anyway.  I did something stupid.   It’s as easy as that.  I lost my temper, I said stuff I shouldn’t have and there it is.”

Angeal lifts Zack’s chin to look at him, “We both did.  Zack, I mean it.  I’m sorry.”

Zack just nods to him and then sits on his bed, “Look….I’m tired, okay?  I think I just want a nap.”

 

Sephiroth looks at Angeal, nodding as if he knows he’s right, “Of course he’s backing away from you.  Physical and verbal abuse tend to delve caverns between people.”

Angeal scowls, “I did not abuse him.”

Genesis looks up from his book, “You do understand definitions don’t you.  As such, physical abuse is, any intentional act causing injury or trauma to another person by way of bodily contact.  You spanked him, physical.  Verbal abuse, is described as a negative defining statement told to the victim or about the victim.  You called him stupid, talked down to him and made him feel small in front of his friend.  Ergo, abuse. 

Angeal rolls his eyes, “There are a thousand and one ways the three of us fall in to those categories. 

Sephiroth keeps his gaze, “We aren’t the ones learning by example though, are we?”

Angeal looks at his two best friends, “I apologized.  I told you that.”

Genesis nods to him, “Good start.  You have to mend this Angeal.  You shattered his trust and feeling of safety with you.  That’s going to be hard to get back.”

Sephiroth meets Angeal’s eyes, “Apologizing once won’t fix this.  He’s a scared kid, of you.  You’re better than that Angeal, he needs you.”

Angeal lets out a low breath and nods, looking at his phone as he holds it up, “I know….usually about now I have at least four random texts from him about nothing….he hasn’t even sent one.”

Genesis pats his shoulder, “Whose fault is that?”

 

It’s late at night by the time Angeal finishes his work and instead of heading to his own apartment, he heads over to Cloud and Zack’s.  Cloud answers, still awake and playing video games on the TV.  He tells Angeal that Zack hasn’t come out since earlier and probably fell asleep there.  Angeal heads in and opens the door to Zack’s room, the light still on but Cloud is right, Zack is completely asleep.  Angeal looks down at him and takes a breath.  Zack’s cheeks….he puts a finger on it softly and can feel the wetness.  The action causes Zack to wake and as he  does, gasps in surprise, flinging his entire body against the headboard quickly.

“My duties….I forgot them didn’t I?  I’m so-“ Zack starts,  getting a finger on his lips to tell him to be quiet.

“You have nothing to be sorry for.  I took care of all of them for you.” Angeal admits, bringing his finger off of Zack’s mouth and moves his hand to take one of Zack’s in his own, “Zack.  I’m sorry.  I  hurt you today….and I should never have done either thing.  Hitting you….it didn’t solve anything.  Calling you names….made it worse.  I lost your trust today…..because of my own actions.  I’m sorry, for ever making you feel like less than a person or afraid of me.  I want to fix that, I want to make this right, make it up to you.”

Zack looks away uncomfortable, tears stinging in his eyes as he tries to keep his calm, “I just….please, I’m tired.  Okay?”

Angeal hears the unspoken request and nods, standing up, “Zack….rest up…..and take the day off tomorrow.  When you are ready to train…you tell me.  Okay?  You tell me when you are ready, I’m not going to push you.”

Zack doesn’t look at him and only nods, “’Kay.”

Angeal feels the sting in his chest, watching the face he once saw bright smiles out of looking away scared, “Zack….I swear I’ll do everything in my power to make this right by you.  You’re the best thing to happen to me.  I love you kid.”

Zack looks up at Angeal, tears rolling down his face as he hears the admission, “You….”

Angeal nods, moving to Zack and sits by him, stroking his cheek, “I love you.  And I’m so sorry that I ever made you think I didn’t. “

Zack hugs Angeal tightly, letting himself be pulled into the strong arms and can’t help cry as he’s held, not even sure what to think anymore.  But he doesn’t care.  Not right now. 


End file.
